“Never to ask for the meaning of a word in isolation, but only in the context of a proposition.”
Gottlob Frege · Analytic philosophy / Logicism
meaningknowledge
Paraphrase or translation
Philosopher
Last reviewed:
Gottlob Frege
1848–1925 · Analytic philosophy / Logicism · Modern
Gottlob Frege was a German mathematician at Jena who invented modern logic with quantifiers in his Begriffsschrift (1879) and is often called the founder of analytic philosophy. He tried to show arithmetic rests on logic alone (logicism). Russell's 1902 letter revealed a paradox in his system, which Frege accepted with great honesty. His distinction between sense and reference explains why 'the morning star is the evening star' is informative: two senses, one object, Venus.
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He insisted on separating logic from psychology. Late in life he wrote antisemitic, nationalist diary entries, which scholars note as part of the record.
One translated card and one summary.
Start here
'On Sense and Reference', tr. Max Black.
Short and foundational.
Quotations
'The morning star' and 'the evening star' refer to the same thing, Venus, but differ in sense, which is why saying they are the same tells us something.
Gottlob Frege · Analytic philosophy / Logicism
meaningknowledge
Summary
Key ideas
Sense and reference
Two expressions can pick out one thing in different ways.
Context principle
Ask for a word's meaning only within a sentence.
Logicism
Arithmetic as pure logic.
Major works
Begriffsschrift (1879)
Modern logic.
The Foundations of Arithmetic (1884)
Tr. J. L. Austin.
On Sense and Reference (1892)
Sinn und Bedeutung.
Influences
Influenced
Common misreadings
- Russell's paradox did not destroy his logic, only his system of arithmetic.
- 'Reference' (Bedeutung) is sometimes translated 'meaning', which confuses readers.
Famous lines Gottlob Frege never said
None of the lines this library files for Gottlob Frege is marked Questionable or Misattributed. That is only a fact about these cards. It is not a certificate that every popular sentence is theirs.
FAQ
What is the best book to start with?
'On Sense and Reference', tr. Max Black. Short and foundational.
What is the most famous quote?
This library does not measure fame, and it does not rank lines by how often they are shared. The first line it files for Gottlob Frege that is not marked Questionable or Misattributed is “Never to ask for the meaning of a word in isolation, but only in the context of a proposition.” (The Foundations of Arithmetic, Introduction, tr. J. L. Austin, Paraphrase or translation).
What is the most misquoted line?
None of the lines this library files for Gottlob Frege is marked Misattributed or Questionable. That is a fact about these cards, not a certificate that every popular sentence is theirs.
What is one key idea, in a sentence?
Sense and reference: Two expressions can pick out one thing in different ways.